Inflating apparatus



Q United States Patent 11113,550,652

[72] Inventor Osyp Nimylowycz [56] References Cited 1 N sg 'kg UNITED STATES PATENTS Qf Au 26 1968 2,444,717 7/1948 Allen 9/11.1 [45] Patented 3,122,181 2/1964 Hebenstreit et al 141/4 9 [73] Assignee The United States of America as represented 3,304,963 2/1967 Greenlee 141/4 by th Secretary of h Army Primary Examiner-Laverne D. Geiger Assistant ExaminerEdward J. Earls Attorneys-Harry M. Saragovitz, Edward J. Kelly. Herbert Ber] and S. Dubroff [54] INFLATING APPARATUS 4 Claims. 5 Drawing Figs.

[52] [1.8. CI 141/313, ABSTRACT: A gas generator inflating arrangement particu- 9/314 larly employed with life rafts and having an intermediate valve [5 1] Int. Cl B63c 9/16 body with the capacity to provide the inflatable rafts with at- [50] Field of Search 9/1 1.1, mospheric breathing prior to delivery of generated pressure gas through the valve body to inflate the rafts.

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' SHEET H []F 4 JNVENTOR, OSYP N l MYLOWYCZ 149M ATTORNEY5.

INFLATING APPARATUS The invention described herein may be manufactured, used, and licensed by 'or for the U.S. Government for governmental purposes without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

' mental or atmospheric air prior to inflation and particularly during periods of storage. v

A further feature of the invention is to provide such an arrangement wherein the loaded generator is effectively sealed from the atmosphere during storage.

Another feature of the invention is that the raft control valves have seats located remotely from the hot generator gas flow, thereby being protected from burning and erosion.

These and other objects, features and advantages will become more apparent from the following description and accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational section view, partially broken away, of a preferred arrangement embodying the principles of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3 and 4 are views similar to FIG. 2 showing various valve portions in different operative positions; and

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 1.

The gas generator raft inflating arrangement, shown generally at I0 (FIG. 1) includes a gas generator housing 11 having an externally threaded end portion'12 for matingly receiving an internally threaded boss portion 13 of valve body 14 that interconnects appropriately connected inflatable life raft members 15, 15 (FIGS. 1, 2) with the gas generator.

Valve body 14 has a central longitudinal passage'l7 that is aligned with a central forward opening 18 (FIGS. 1,5) of the gas generator thermal insulation 19 and intersects a central transverse passage 20 that slidably receives the hollow, reduced neck portion 21 of a main valve member 22. A plurality of transverse passages 24, 25 (FIGS. 2, 5 each adjacent and parallel to the central transverse passage 20, slidably receive corresponding valve stems 26, 26 which are recessed so as to be of an X cross section substantially their entire axial length and carry a respective annular knife-edged valve 27, 27

for purposes to be described.

The main or atmospheric breather valve 22 has a cupshaped head portion 29 whose wall contains a plurality of lateral apertures 30 and appropriate external O-rings 31, 32 and is slidably received in the transversely extending atmospheric port 33 (FIGS. 3, 5) that is aligned with the transverse passages 20, 24, 25 and terminates in an appropriately secured centrally apertured plug 34. The wall of atmospheric port 33 is valve body 14 has an annular groove 35 (FIG. 3) of sufficient width to fluidly communicate main valve sidewall apertures 30 with the valve stems 26, 26 when the valve 22 is opened (FIG. 3). The wall of port 33 also has a smaller annular groove 35A (FIG. 3) and O-ring 32 is movable between grooves 35 and 35A to lock. the valve 22 in open and closed positions.

I The sidewall of main valve neck portion 21 preferably has a number of diametrically opposed lateral openings 36 which, when uncovered upon main valve 22 closing, fluidly communicate the gas generator with the valve stems 26, 26, as seen in FIG. 2 wherein the 'main or atmospheric valve 22 and the knife-edged or generated pressure gas control valves 27, 27 are closed. Valves 27 27 are carried by their stems 26 at a mid portion thereof and operate in respective counterbores 37, 37 of body 14 which are suitably threaded at their outer ends to securely receive mating external threads on one end 38 of corresponding elbow connectors 39, 39 whose other ends are threaded for connection to raft members or portions 15, 15. Each counterbore 37 terminates in a deeply recessed annular groove 40 (FIG. 3) in which the O-ring valve seats 41 are respectively positioned surrounding the thereby defined high protruding lip 42 and associated valve stem 26. Each elbow central passage 44 has a counterbore 45 (FIG. 2) at elbow one end 38 to slidably receive with substantial clearance the upper portion of the respective control valve stem 26, and an appropriate compression spring 46 surrounds each stern upper portion between the corresponding control valve 27 and as sociated elbow one end 38 to normally bias its valve 27 to aclosed position when the pressure within raft portions l5, l5 exceeds the pressure around the lower portion of valve stems, 26, 26 by a predetermined amount.

The main valve 22, upon assembly, is opened or elevated manually to its FIG. 3 position, thereby opening valves 27, 27. to permit environmental ;or atmospheric breathing by raft portions 15 particularly during storage. In addition it allows the inflation of the raft through apertured plug 34 by external sources for periodical inspection for raft leaks. In this condition, generator gas communication ports 36, are closed and sealed by O-ring 50 that is carried by the main valve neck 21 adjacent the head portion to thereby interrupt fluid communication between the generator housing interior and the atmosphere.

When it is desired to inflate the raft portions l5, 15, the gas generator is fired and the resulting hot, high pressure gas closes or lowers the main valve in a snap action motion of O- ring 32 into groove 35A to close off external communication and, as ports 36, are uncovered (FIG. 4), the generated high pressure gas impacts upon and opens valves 27 in opposition to their springs 46 and the pressure gas rapidly inflates the raft. When a predetermined pressure differential has been achieved between the raft portions and the passages 24, the springs 46 will close the valves 27 in an assured and positive manner, as the parts will return to their FIG. 2 position with the raft portions interior sealed from each other and the atmosphere.

Various modifications, alterations or changes may be resorted to without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Iclaim:

1. In a gas generator inflating arrangement having a gas generator, inflatable means, and an interconnecting valve body, said valve body having a central longitudinal passage in fluid communication with said gas generator and a central transverse passage intersecting said longitudinal passage, a plurality of transverse passages each adjacent and parallel to said central transverse passage and slidably receiving a valve stem, a knife-edged valve carried by each of said valve stems, a transversely extending atmospheric port in alignment with said transverse passages and slidably receiving a head portion of a main valve member which normally closes said central transverse passage while allowing communication between said inflatable means and the atmosphere said valve member having a substantially hollow reduced neck portion slidably mounted in said central transverse passage, each of said adjacent transverse passageshaving a counterbore for receiving a corresponding one of said knife-edged valves and means in each counterbore for attaching corresponding inflatable members, and lateral port means in said neck portion for fluidly communicating said gas generator with said valve stems when said main valve is in its closed position.

2. The arrangement in accordance with claim 1 wherein said body has a deeply recessed annular groove containing a valve seat O-ring surroundingly adjacent each of said valve stems and in alignmentwith the corresponding knife-edged valve.

3. The arrangement of claim 2 in which each of said stems has axially extending recess means substantially the entire length thereof, and a spring surrounding a portion of each stem for biasing the respective knife-edged valves against their seats.

4. The arrangement of claim 3 wherein said main valve member head portion is of a cuplike configuration and has laterally extending port means in sidewall portions thereof,

and annular groove means in said bod y atmospheric port having a width suflicient to fluidly communicate said sidewall port 

